Deducting garden maintenance costs

Garden maintenance is in principle not deductible, but there are exceptions…

To be able to deduct the costs of laying out and maintaining your garden, there must be a business link. A garden is usually private, so that link isn’t automatic.

By definition, something only counts as a business expense when the purchase helps you maintain or increase your income. However, there are plenty of exceptions that make garden maintenance costs (partially) deductible for you.

• Clients have to pass through your garden to reach your office.
• You’ve turned part of the front garden into green parking.
• You use part of the garden to receive clients.

And there are probably a few more situations like these. In these cases you can argue that garden maintenance is important for your business. However, the costs will rarely be fully deductible. You may only deduct a reasonable part of the costs. The rest remains a personal expense. 

You can calculate the proportion based on surface area or on how much time it is used professionally, but it’s best to discuss it with your accountant. 

Is the VAT on garden maintenance deductible?

You may only deduct the VAT on garden maintenance in proportion to the professional use. If the professional use is 25%, you can reclaim 25% of the VAT.